Banner Season: Rams, Badgers come together for Critelli Cup clash in search of second OUA title
Toronto (by David DiCenzo) - After months of battles, two OUA Central giants are left standing. The No. 6 nationally-ranked Brock Badgers and the No. 2 Ryerson Rams, two familiar divisional foes, will face off in the Critelli Cup thanks to a pair of dramatic road victories in hostile environments. Brock, fresh off a 69-65 takedown of the Western Mustangs in London, will travel to the Mattamy Athletic Centre in Toronto to face the Rams, who booked their spot in the conference final with an impressive 84-76 win in Ottawa against the No. 3 Gee-Gees.
2020 Critelli Cup Women's Basketball Championship Fan Guide
Brock manufactured a great regular season by posting a 17-5 record and though the team didn’t dominate the box scores on a nightly basis, they did show an ability to hit from deep, finishing third in the OUA with 179 made three-pointers. Third-year post player Samantha Keltos (15.4 ppg), a second team all-star, and senior guard Jessica Morris (11.0 ppg) were two of three Badgers to score double digits on the year, but fifth-year guard and conference Player of the Year Melissa Tatti was the team’s relentless motor, helping Brock maintain its poise when it mattered most, especially throughout an incredible postseason run.
The Badgers had to dig deep in their opening playoff game, realistically facing elimination when the Windsor Lancers built a 51-32 lead after three quarters of play at the Bob Davis Gym in St. Catharines. But the hosts produced one of their best quarters of basketball all season, outscoring the Lancers 29-6 in the final frame to earn a berth in the semifinal against the No. 5 Mustangs with a stunning 61-57 comeback win. Tatti, the OUA’s leading scorer with 18.5 PPG during the regular season, was sensational, scoring 15 of her 20 points in the decisive second half, including a three to tie the game at 57-57 and two big free throws to ice it.
It was more of the same for the battle-tested Badgers in the OUA semifinal. Western didn’t waste much time getting out of the gates, jumping out to a 25-16 lead after the first quarter and a 40-28 lead at the half. Unphased, the visitors began to mount a comeback and Tatti came up huge yet again. Her strong left-handed take gave the Badgers a 65-62 deep into the fourth quarter and with the shot clock ticking down, Tatti buried a long, step-back two with 21 seconds remaining to make it 69-65. Morris led all Badgers with 19 points, while Keltos had 17 and Sofia Croce added 12 points.
Brock won its lone OUA championship back in the 1982/83 season and will have to get past a tough Ryerson squad to accomplish the feat for a second time. The teams spilt their two regular-season meetings on the year, with Brock winning 68-58 at home back on October 26 and the Rams taking their most recent matchup 81-66 on February 1 in Toronto.
Ryerson was a problem for most opponents this year, powering their way to an 18-4 record with a five-game win streak heading into the Critelli Cup playoffs. The Rams shot the ball often and did it well, finishing second in the conference in both field goals made per game (28.5) and field goal percentage (40.3 per cent). That included a deadly attack from beyond the arc as Ryerson made 8.7 three-pointers per game (second in the OUA) at a league-leading 34.3 per cent clip. Junior guard Marin Scotten stepped up to lead the team in scoring with 17 PPG en route to second team all-star honours. Her play proved invaluable after talented junior guard Jama Bin-Edward went down injured with just 10 games played. Scotten also grabbed 7.3 RPG, finishing right behind senior forward Bronwyn Williams at 7.4.
The Rams had a fairly comfortable time in their OUA quarterfinal meeting with the Queen’s Gaels, defeating the visitors 74-59. Ryerson locked it down in the second quarter of the game, allowing just four points and the Gaels never really recovered despite outscoring the hosts over the latter half. The Rams got a massive performance from second-year guard and third team all-Star Hayley Robertson, who led all players with 23 points. Scotten added 22, with a team-high 11 boards.
Ryerson had every reason to be confident going on the road to the nation’s capital and they looked strong in the early going of the OUA semifinal against the powerhouse Gee-Gees. The Rams put up 29 points in the opening quarter to build a 12-point cushion. Ottawa rebounded well to get back in the game, thanks in part to a buzzer-beating three from Savannah Provo for a one-point lead at the half, but Ryerson regrouped. The visitors trailed 65-63 with 5:21 left in the game before closing strong to eliminate the Gee-Gees on their home court. Rachel Farwell led the Rams with 21 points, while Robertson and Scotten chipped in with 20 and 16 points, respectively.
Like Brock, the Rams have won the OUA championship once in school history, with that banner coming in the 2015-16 season.
One of these two great teams will add to their title haul on Saturday, completing a hard journey through an unforgiving conference. After Brock and Ryerson produced two memorable campaigns, the Critelli Cup recipient promises to be a deserving winner.
Fans can purchase tickets to the game, which will invade the Mattamy Athletic Centre on Saturday, February 29 at 6:00pm or can tune in live via oua.tv, CBC Sports, or CBC Gem.
